Bolster-dampened freight car truck

ABSTRACT

In a railroad car windowed side frame and bolster combination, a removable inclined antifriction bearing pad on the bolster is in contact with the inclined face of a spring-biased, stabilizing wedge, so that the frictional resistance to upward movement of the wedge is minimal to permit the spring to cause maximum lateral pressure of the wedge, against a vertical friction surface on the side frame, to increase the stabilizing effect of the wedge. The plate is dovetailed into the bolster at its lower edge and is locked in place by a weld between the plate and a ledge projecting from the bolster at its upper edge.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Ray C. Williams 2,352,693 7/1944 Davidson 105/197(D) Chicago, Ill. 2,355,450 8/1944 Leese 105/224 [211 Appl. No. 757,845 2,697,406 12/1954 Heater et al.. 105/ 197(D) [22] Filed Sept. 6, 1968, 3,127,850 4/1964 Clasen l05/l97(D) [45] Patented Feb- 2, I971 3,320,904 5/1967 Weber 105/197(D) I73] Asslgnee z fi Truck Company Primary Examiner-Arthur L. La Point f of New Jerse Assistant Examiner-Howard Beltran a y Attorney-Parker, Carter & Markey [54] BOLSTER-DAMPENED FREIGHT CAR TRUCK 3 Cl 3 Drawin F aims, g gs ABSTRACT: In a railroad car windowed side frame and [52] US. Cl 105/197, bolster combination, a removable inclined antifriction bearing 05/226 pad on the bolster is in contact with the inclined face of a [51] Int. Cl 861i 5/06, springbiased, Stabilizing wedge, so that the frictional 5/ I 2 sistance toupward movement of the wedge is minimal to per- [50] Field of Search 105/197, mit the Spring to cause maximum lateral pressure of the 197A" 197D 197m?" 226 wedge, against a vertical friction surface on the side frame, to increase the stabilizing effect of the wedge. The plate is [56] References cued dovetailed into the bolster at its lower edge and is locked in UNITED STATES PATENTS place by a weld between the plate and a ledge projecting from 2,142,426 1/1939 Webb 105/197(D) the bolster at its upper edge.

BOLSTER-DAMPENED FREIGHT CAR TRUCK SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION US. Pat. No. 3,127,850 issued Apr. 7 1964 to C..I.W. Clasen for Stabilized Railway Car Truck illustrates very well the effect of the stabilizing wedge between the bolster and the side frame of a railroad car where 'a spring biases the wedge upwardly into the tapering space between a vertical friction surface on the side frame and an upwardly and outwardly inclined wedging surface on the floor of a pocket in the bolster.

As the bolster moves up and down in the window of the side frame, the wedge moves with it along the friction surface on the side frame. There is little movement of the wedge along the inclined surface of the bolster. It is the friction between the wedge and the friction surface on the side frame which snubs the car. Friction between the wedge and the bolster does not snub the car but does tend to reduce the wedging biasing effect of the spring.

Heretofore, the opposed surfaces of wedge, bolster and side frame have been, in the interest of economy and simplicity, of

substantially similar material, preferably of steel and friction resistance to movements between similar materials tends to be high.

As car weights and train speeds increase, increased snubbing or stabilizing power is necessary and this can be obtained by decreasing the frictional resistance between wedge and bolster, thus permitting the upward pressure of the spring to increase the lateral pressure component of the wedge against the vertical friction.

A removable antifrietion wear plate, preferably of smooth hardened spring steel, is dovetailed at its lower end into the inclined face of the bolster pocket and is keyed in place by a weld interposed between the upper edge of the plate and a flange on the bolster and substantially reduces the resistance to upward movement of the wedge because of the substantial reduction in frictional resistance to movement of the wedge along the tapered floor of the pocket. In the past, it has been common to have the floor of the pocket in the bolster and the inclined surface of the wedge of cast steel. The presence of the spring steel wear plate makes it unnecessary to carefully machine the floor of the pocket in the bolster and also makes I it easy to replace the effective pocket floor when wear takes place.

The stabilizing spring always biases the wedge upwardly against the inclined antifrietion plate which faces the floor of the pocket. The spring urging the wedge upwardly earns the wedge outwardly to hold it in frictional relationship with the vertical wear surface and, since the inclined floor offers little frictional resistance, the horizontal pressure component resulting from the upward pressure of the spring is a maximum against the vertical plate. The necessary reduction of friction cannot be adequately obtained by applying a lubricant to the surfaces between the wedge and bolster because continuous relubrication would be necessary, because a lubricant at that point, exposed to road dust, would constantly attract dust and decrease the antifrietion effect and because lubricant might well travel around to the surface between the wedge and the friction plate on the frame to minimize the damping effect.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is illustrated, more or less diagrammatically, in the following drawings wherein: 1

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a part of a railway car truck with parts in section disclosing the stabilizing mechanism;

FIG. 2 is a section along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1, and I FIG. 3 is a half view on a large scale through the bolster friction shoe pocket.

Like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the specification and drawings. Because the truck frames on option, in the interest of simplicity, are limited to the arrangement of one end of the bolster.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The truck structure shown herein, includes in its general organization a side frame 10, windowed at II, the window being penetrated by a bolster 12 supported by load-carrying springs 13 on a lower tension member 14 of the side frame 10. The window II, where the bolster l2 penetrates it, is bounded by a vertical wear surface 15, in register with a pocket 16, in the wall of the bolster 12. A stabilizing spring 17, supports a friction wedge 18, and biases it upwardly into the wedge-shaped space in the pocket 16 defined by the upwardly and outwardly inclined floor 19 of the pocket 16 and the surface 15.

The vertical wear surface 15 may be integral with the side frame 10 or, as indicated, may take the form of a removable vertical plate 20. The opposed surfaces of the vertical plate and the wedge being of such character that they provide a high frictional resistance to the up and down movement of the wedge as it moves with the bolster. The stabilizing spring 17, during up and down movement of the bolster, holds the wedge firmly against the pocket.

The angular opposed surfaces of the wedge 18 and the pocket floor 19 are such as to have a much lower frictional coefficient than the frictional coefficient between the vertical side of the wedge and the vertical wear surface in the window. This reduced friction may be obtained by placing in the floor of the pocket a removable and renewable antifrietion plate 21 of hardened smooth spring steel.

To provide for easy and convenient replacement and renewal, the floor of the pocket is faced by the smooth antifriction hardened spring steel plate 21 which is chamfered at its lower edge and is in dovetail relationship with the shelf 22 which projects from the floor. A flange 23 projecting from the floor overhangs the upper edge of the plate 21 and, in cooperation with the weld 24 between the upper edge of the plate and the flange, keys the plate in position in the floor of the pocket so that movement of the plate is inhibited both by the holding action of the weldment and by the presence of the weld filling the space between the flange and the upper edge of the plate working in conjunction with the dovetailed bottom edge.

I claim:

1. In a railroad car truck, a windowed side frame, a bolster extending through the window, a wedge pocket in said bolster having an upwardly and outwardly inclined floor in opposition to a vertical wear surface on the side frame, a stabilizing wedge in the pocket having a vertical friction surface in contact with the wear surface on the side frame and an inclined wedging surface in opposition to the floor of the pocket, a removable wear plate inset in a recess in said inclined floor, said recess having a horizontal lower edge, said wear plate having an inclined lower edge formed and adapted to engage and be supported on said horizontal lower edge of said recess, said wear plate being held in said recess by a weldment located between the upper edge of said recess and the lower edge of said wear plate, and, a spring biasing the wedge upwardly against the removable wear plate to cam the wedge laterally against the wear surface on the side frame.

2. The device of claim 1 characterized by the fact that the wear plate in opposition to the wedging surface of the wedge is made of smooth hardened spring steel, the frictional resistance between the wedge and the wear plate being substantially less than the frictional resistance between the wedge and the vertical wear surface on the side frame.

3. The structure of claim I further characterized in that the upper edge of said recess is generally horizontal and the upper edge of said wear plate is inclined to the horizontal to form a key area between the top edge of the recess and the plate to contain the weldment. 

1. In a railroad car truck, a windowed side frame, a bolster extending through the window, a wedge pocket in said bolster having an upwardly and outwardly inclined floor in opposition to a vertical wear surface on the side frame, a stabilizing wedge in the pocket having a vertical friction surface in contact with the wear surface on the side frame and an inclined wedging surface in opposition to the floor of the pocket, a removable wear plate inset in a recess In said inclined floor, said recess having a horizontal lower edge, said wear plate having an inclined lower edge formed and adapted to engage and be supported on said horizontal lower edge of said recess, said wear plate being held in said recess by a weldment located between the upper edge of said recess and the lower edge of said wear plate, and, a spring biasing the wedge upwardly against the removable wear plate to cam the wedge laterally against the wear surface on the side frame.
 2. The device of claim 1 characterized by the fact that the wear plate in opposition to the wedging surface of the wedge is made of smooth hardened spring steel, the frictional resistance between the wedge and the wear plate being substantially less than the frictional resistance between the wedge and the vertical wear surface on the side frame.
 3. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that the upper edge of said recess is generally horizontal and the upper edge of said wear plate is inclined to the horizontal to form a key area between the top edge of the recess and the plate to contain the weldment. 